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Of Crosses And Swords: Retrieving The Crosses
Days passed until the train finally arrived to Moscow. Finnick led Nick and Judy through the streets of the cold city, until they came across a paperboy. The fennec paid a few rubles for the local newspaper, and showed it to the group. “A ball is to be held at Duke Koslov´s palace, among with an auction for priceless jewels. The Duke is rumored to be paying with his own treasures instead of money. He has invited all the important people in the city”, Nick read. “So that is where we must go. But how can we get in there? We are not invited on the guest list, and we can´t afford to pay the humongous prices for the cross if the Duke has it there”, Judy wondered. Finnick thought this for a second. “Hmmm…the Duke is a huge show off who likes to introduce his collection to all the admirers. And since you´re an archaeologist, maybe he´d be interested to talk about the history of his baubles with you”, Finnick thought. “Sounds like a sound plan. If we behave well, maybe we can stay until the auction comes and find a way to get the cross”, Nick nodded. Soon they were at the palace, which looked almost fit for a Czar. Among all the riches lived the pompous polar bear, who welcomed the guests. “Ah, pleased to meet an expert on artifacts! I´m Duke Koslov, one of the most influential noblemen in all of Russia”, he said to Judy and Nick. “The pleasure is all mine, good sir. We´ve heard rumors of your fabulous collection, even the Queen of my country doesn´t have as fancy as yours”, Judy told. “Oh, now you´re just flattering. Follow me, I´ll show you”, Kozlov showed them around the palace. He had all sorts of precious diamonds and jewelry on display. But no signs of the cross anywhere. “And behind this vault, I´m keeping the cream of the crop that I´m keeping secret and safe from commoner eyes. Nobody is allowed to touch them except me”, Koslov told. Judy gulped. She realized that the cross was most certainly there. “I see. I´ve heard something about that”, she thought. “Young lady, I´d be most honored if you and your fox companion would join me on tonight´s ball and auction. It´s not every day festivities like that are held in here”, the polar bear said. “Most certainly”, Judy curtseyed. “Escort them to the guestrooms”, the bear told his wolf butler. “We´ll have to wait for the right moment and convince him that the cross is dangerous”, Nick whispered to Judy´s ear. “Hopefully we succeed this time. We can´t let Jack win”, Judy added. As the night fell, the palace was filled with important guests. All sorts of wealthy mammals from all over Russia and even some other countries were present for the auction. Nick and Judy were on the ballroom already. The former had put on a better tux while the latter had a beautiful blue evening dress. The auction didn´t start just yet, so they had time to enjoy some of the drinks there and Nick even took Judy to the ballroom floor. The rabbit enjoyed it more than she expected. Getting to know Nick was just as much an adventure as finding the crosses was. Expect with this treasure she was a lot more successful. From the way his warm eyes gazed at her, there was no denying an attraction between the two. “You know…I´ve been on so many adventures in my life, but never with someone like you. I feel like discovering something that´s been missing”, Judy said as Nick escorted her to the balcony to look at the stars. “It´s fascinating. A strange magician predator and a prey who believes in science…who would´ve thought?” Nick smiled. “Are we really that different on the inside? I don´t think so, Nick”, Judy added. She could relate to how the fox felt at the moment too. This adventure had proved so far that life itself had even more surprises than ancient tombs or shrines, and could even reveal more valuable treasures than those. Nick placed his paw on her shoulder. Judy turned towards him and gave him an enticing smile. “Sometimes I wish this adventure could be done soon….so that I could start a new life, with you by my side”, Nick admitted. “We will make it through if we hold on together, Nick. Whether we succeed or not”, Judy encouraged him. She even gave a tiny peck on his cheek. For a moment, the fox felt like he was in bliss. They both were falling from the edge in love. The bond was strengthening every day as their journey continued. But it wasn´t over yet. Soon, all the guests headed to the auction room. Among the first mammals selling jewels was a striped jackrabbit with fake mustache and holding a jeweled egg. “It´s Jack!” Nick gasped. “And that jewelry egg is a convincing fake, I can see that from afar. He wants the Duke to sell off his cross!” Judy noticed. “How much will you offer for the fabled diamond egg of Furberge?” the disguised villain asked. “10 million rubles!” an Italian nobleman named Mr.Big set the first price. “12!” a boar named Colonel Spigot said. “How about 15?” an arctic fox duchess asked. “19 million rubles!” Mr.Big added. “20!” Spigot kept on going. “Njet! I´m offering this Celtic cross, worthy of 50 million rubles!” Koslov said. “Sold! The egg is yours!” Jack was ready to get the cross. All the other people expressed their disappointment at not winning the auction. Mr Big swore in Italian as he left the room along with Spigot. “WAIT!” Judy interrupted as everyone turned to her direction. “You again! How many times I have to kill you, girl?” Jack asked. “This egg is a fake, and the cross in your possession is stolen property from England! This man has been trying to con you, Your Highness!” Judy pointed at the egg and the cross. “Goodness! I´ve been hoarding stolen jewelry!” Koslov was shocked as Judy proved her words. “Those words will be your last!” Jack pulled out his sword. Nick threw his sword at Judy who started fighting again. The fox didn´t use his magic there, because he didn´t want to cause any chaos. This time, Judy had gotten more confidence and will to fight. Maybe the time spent with Nick had strengthened her, but now she was getting the upper hand. After blocking and dodging Jack´s attacks, she managed to disarm him and he even dropped the two other crosses he had stolen before. “Greed will not pay, Mr Savage”, Judy said. “You haven´t seen the last of me, Judy Hopps!” he fled the scenery. "You know, you´re very good with that sword. I think I´ll let you keep it", Nick was impressed by Judy´s fight. "Thanks a lot, Nick. But look at what we got!" Judy showed all the crosses to him. “We did it! We´re one step ahead of our enemy at last. Wait…what´s that?” Nick noticed a scroll that the jackrabbit had dropped along with the crosses. Judy opened the scroll, discovering a map to a castle in the north of Scotland. She gasped as she realized what it was. “This is it! The final cross is here! We have to get back to England!” Judy decided. Nick nodded, but he had a strange feeling as he looked at the paper. The direction the castle was seemed strangely familiar to him… Meanwhile, Jack had returned to Bellwether and informed her of his defeat. The two had sent a telegraph to their boss back in London. The mysterious Professor read the note in his hideout. “They´re going to Scotland for the final cross…and we´re heading there too. This time there´s no escape for those two meddling mammals!” he smiled wickedly. The rat-like figure walked out of the darkness, ready to put his final plan into motion. The confrontation with him was at hand. Category:Of Crosses And Swords series Category:Victorian Era stories Category:Fantasy adventure stories Category:AU Fanfics Category:Stories not in the Zootopia universe